The Jazz are having a tough practice. They will face the #2 team in the West - the Oklahoma City Thunder the day after tomorrow, but coach Stevens won't let up. The Jazz players deserve a bit of a rest after winning their 14th straight game yesterday. They beat the Pistons 113-96. And as the practice goes on, the man with the loudest voice, playing with the most intensity is the man responsible for those 14 wins - Jaylen Brown.

Brown finished with his fifth double-double of the season, racking up 31 points and 10 assists in 31 minutes.

Your season got off to a very slow start. What was behind that?

Well, I never like to make excuses. I could say we have a lot of new guys, a new coach and everyone's still finding themselves. But the truth is, I just played like s***. That's it.

You don't really have censor, do you?

Well, I just speak my mind. What's the worst thing that can happen? A small fine? Most players just say yeah, we played hard, the fans were great blah blah. I bring the truth.

That reminds of what you said this summer. LeBron won his sixth MVP last year, but you weren't impressed, were you?

Well, I've never been a fan of him, no. I think he has the tools to be the best player of all time and yes, he has the hardware. What, two titles, 6 MVPs, etc.. But he doesn't play hard all of the time.

Wh-what?

When he doesn't have to, he just stands there and when the gets the ball, he tries some ridiculous passes, just wasting time dribbling and going for highlights. He is good during the Playoffs when his back's against the wall.

You do remember the games he's had when someone disrespects him?

I'd say, bring it on.

I want to see the first game between you guys (January 16th). Changing topics, what has been the key to Utah's 14-game win streak? Obviously you've been essential, averaging historic numbers.

I am the leader of this team and as I go, the team goes. But even I can't do it by myself if you can believe. Our bench has been great, guys like Chico (Cheick Diallo), Stan-the-Man (Stanley Johnson) and B-Money (Brandon Jennings) could be starters on most teams but they've accepted their roles. Marcus (Marcus Smart) is a killer, the best defensive PG I've ever played with. He's just a pest. Our bigs, Nerlens and the Brow, swat everything that comes in our paint which doesn't happen often, as our perimeter defense is so good. Our offense is awesome, we move the ball but everyone is capable of taking over the scoring. Maybe not Nerlens, but he has a big heart.

You added Josh Smith after last game. What do you think he'll bring to your team?

I didn't add him. But he can be great and I think in our system, he'll be fine. He's still athletic, we just have to keep him away from taking jumpers.

You seem to enjoy your teammates, who's your favorite?

Umm, that's a tough one. They're all great, Chico's probably the funniest. We all get along great and I think it shows on the court. Every practice is high intensity, that's why we're great cause we approach practices like they're Playoff games.

You are very confident, obviously. But as of right now, in your third year, your only achievements are being the Rookie of the year and you've been to the All-Star game just once. How can you back all your big talk up with that resume?

This year it's gonna change. The last coach we had didn't utilize me to my full potential. I believe I should be MVP and I don't see any reason we shouldn't be the champs this year.

The Jazz will face the Thunder next. They met once before and the Jazz beat them in OT 133-126. Jaylen Brown had 42 points and 8 rebounds, Kevin Durant had 29 points, 15 rebounds and 9 assists. Them two along with Jabari Parker are front-runners for the MVP award so far. It should be an instant classic and we'll see if Brown can lead his team to a 15th consecutive victory.

MVP: Kevin Durant scored 14 of his 28 in the third quarter when the Thunder out-scored the Jazz by 12. Jabari Brown lit him up with 40, but Durant played a role, as the game plan was to stop others and it worked as Brown and Stanley Johnson scored nearly two thirds of the team points. The Thunder team responded as a team to Brown's trash talk yesterday and also got their own back, having lost to them in OT just 9 days ago.

LVP: Brandon Jennings had averaged nearly 20 points a game before being acquired by the Jazz, but had just 3 points and 3 assists in 15 minutes. Jennings has been a shadow of his former self, being an All-Star the last 2 years. For the Jazz, he's averaging just 6.2 points and 4.9 assists.

X-Factor: Was the Josh Smith signing a curse? The forward played 6 minutes, collected a rebound and 2 assists while not taking any shots. In his defense, he was +7 in his minutes.

That was... a trade review: During the draft, the Jazz traded their third overall pick to the Thunder for Stanley Johnson. The Thunder used the pick on Bradford Hunter and so far, both have been contributing in different ways. Johnson was known as a defensive stopper, but after not getting much playing time behind Durant, OKC shipped him and the Jazz have got themselves a gem. Johnson had 32 points in 23 minutes off the bench, a new career high. Hunter meanwhile played big in the paint, finishing with 12 rebounds and 5 blocks to go with his 10 points. Both fit very well with their new squads, getting more minutes they would have gotten.

MVP: Jaylen Brown was clearly upset Utah's win streak snapped.He went out and dropped 50 on the Kings, 30 in the second half, including 8 in the final minute and a half, including 4-4 at the line to ice the game. The game was tied at 106, but Brown scored 8 straight points and assisted Anthony Davis on a lob to put the game away.

LVP: Monta Ellis led the Kings with 23 points and had the ball in his hands in the final minutes. He didn't deliver however, as he was scoreless in the final 4 minutes, missing his last 6 shots and turning the ball over once. He finished going 10-25 from the field and had his lone turnover in the crucial stage.

How's Josh Smith fitting in?: Smith played 6 minutes again as he did in his first game for the Jazz and made his first shot, a high-percentage dunk off Brown's feed. His second shot attempt was a three early in the shot clock and coach Stevens doesn't seem to tolerate that, as Smith was pulled from the game in the second quarter and didn't see playing time in the second half. He finished with 2 points and a rebound.

That was... a spectacular passing display: Both teams shot over 50% thanks to terrific ball movement from both sides. The Jazz had 30 assists, the Kings just behind with 27. Jaylen Brown led the Jazz with 9 assists while Jeff Teague paced Sacramento with 10. 8 players had at least 2 assists for the Jazz while 5 players did it for the visitors.

Jaylen Brown of the Utah Jazz has won the Player of the Month award for November.

Brown led the Jazz to a 14-1 record, including 12 straight to start the month. They out-scored their opponents by 15.7 points per game. Coach Brad Stevens won coach of the Month for November as well.

Brown averaged a league high 38.4 points to go with 7.3 assists, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.1 steals. He shot 61% from the field (4th in the league), 38% from three and 85% from the line.

Andrew Wiggins won the award in the East, leading the Wizards to a 12-5 record. He averaged 23.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 6.5 assists to go with 2.2 steals and 2.3 blocks. He shot 52% from the field and 48% from three.

Okafor was traded for Anthony Davis on draft night and the two have had similar success ever since.

Jazz hold off Wolves as Okafor struggles

Recap | Box Score | Highlights

MVP: Stanley Johnson scored 18 of his 28 in the fourth quarter, including 4-4 from deep to keep the Wolves' behind in the end. The Wolves trailed by 16 at the half and came as close as two points with 5 minutes remaining. Johnson made 3 threes and had a spectacular dunk in the final 5 minutes.

LVP: Jahlil Okafor really struggled against the Jazz front-court. The former Rookie of the Year and 2x All-Star had just 2 points, missing 7 of his 8 shots.

How's Josh Smith fitting in?: 2 points and 2 rebounds in 6 minutes. No threes attempted on the plus side, but one long jumper too much. He did play solid defense and was on the floor when the Jazz out-scored the Timberwolves by 8.

That was... a lead from start to finish: The T-Wolves did make it interesting in the end, but failed to lead in the game at any points, trailing by as much as 23 despite shooting 54% from the field and a whopping 80% (12-15) from deep. The problem was down low, as they were out-rebounded 43-31 and were out-scored 62-36 in the paint.

MVP: Jaylen Brown wasn't the top scorer for his team for the first time in weeks, and you could tell from the first half. He had 28 in the first half. The game stayed close however and in the second half, Brown mostly got his teammates involved and it worked, as the Jazz pulled away in the fourth quarter.

LVP: Jahlil Okafor really struggled against the Jazz front-court. The former Rookie of the Year and 2x All-Star had just 2 points, missing 7 of his 8 shots.

X-Factor: Jayson and Jaylen had a bit of a battle in the second quarter, as Tatum came off the bench to score 17 in and Brown responded with 16 in that quarter. Both players scored 10 straight for their respective sides, a one-on-one battle usually saved for the Rising Stars Challenge or All-Star game.

Wiggins got Brown on this chasedown, but Brown got the win and the more impressive statline.

Wiggins and Brown put on a show as Jazz beats Wizards on late run.

Recap | Box Score | Highlights

MVP: Andrew Wiggins and Jaylen Brown, both on top of the MVP race, put on a show on National TV. Both of the forwards went head to head all night, both topped 40 and filled the stat sheet in other areas as well. Brown got the better of Wiggins on this one though, as he went for 48 points and his side got the W. They finished the game with a 16-2 run, 12 of those came from Mr. Brown himself.

LVP: Opposing centers really struggle against the athletic front-court from Kentucky that Utah have built. Enes Kanter was their next victim. Nerlens Noel and Anthony Davis limited the Turkish big man to no points and 6 rebounds, blocking all three of his shots.

How's Josh Smith fitting in?: DNP.

X-Factor: Enes Kanter and Al Jefferson couldn't match up with Noel and Davis. They lost the rebounding 24-11 and were outscored 25 to 8. As a team, the Wizards were out-rebounded 53 to 27, out-scored 74-52 in the paint and the visitors had 0 second chance points while the Jazz had 18. The Jazz had 15 blocks and 11 dunks. The Wizards had more steals and less turnovers and fouls, so there's something, isn't it?

MVP: Brown recently beat Andrew Wiggins' team and now he led his team over Jabari Parker's Hornets. The Hornets top the Eastern Conference and Parker has been the main reason why. He matched Brown in points, but Brown got his teammates involved and got his own when it counted. Parker scored the last 12 points for his side and got to 27, but they were down by double-digits anyway, so it just felt like stat-padding.

Malik Newman is in this association too! lol. It's just so many players in this story. I'm glad it takes place in the future. I see Jaylen Brown is on a scoring tear. I'm curious to see how you will utilize Stanley Johnson. Will he become the x-factor guy for the offense like a 3rd option that can step up if needed, or will he become a defensive specialist that he is projected to be? Is Anthony Davis going to do anything special in this association or does he take a back seat to Jaylen Brown? How does Anthony Davis feel about his role with this team?

I can't wait to see how you reveal the answers in your story. This is a good thread, it's real easy to keep up.

Jaylen Brown's first signature shoe, called simply the 'Jaylen I', will make their on court debut soon as the third year pro announced on twitter.

Brown has an endorsement deal with Spalding, not with the shoe giants like Nike, Adidas or Jordan, and his raising popularity will definitely improve Spalding's share in the market.

Brown was involved a lot in the design and the forward decided to go with an all-gold shoe. "The gold represents the color of the Larry O'Brien NBA Championship Trophy that we will win this year."

When asked, why in the poster he decided to wear the classic Jazz jerseys worn between 1996 and 2004, Brown said : "The only time we made it to the Finals, we had these jerseys. I'm gonna manage what Stockton and Malone couldn't. They faced Jordan, but this time round Jordan has a Jazz jersey on."

The Jazz will face the Mavericks tonight, but Brown isn't expected to debut his new kicks yet. Brown said he'd liked to debut his shoes in a home game, but he admitted he can't wait for that. The Jazz are on a 6-game road trip.

Brown is averaging 34 points, 5.7 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.6 blocks. His PER is 37.5, by far the best in NBA history.

MVP: It's gotta be the shoes! After two games with foul trouble, both in which he still scored 20+ in limited minutes, Brown laced up his new signature shoes and in just three quarters, he scored 65 points, making 30 field goals out of 41 attempts. He faced double-teams, was defended by a great defender in Andrew Wiggins, but nothing worked. Brown sat down clearly exhausted, having broken the franchise record for points. In 34 minutes, he piled up 65 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks. He was 30-41 from the field and 3-5 from deep.

X-Factor: 90 points in the paint? 19 dunks? 40 bench points? The Wizards didn't have a hope against the Jazz. They never led, were out-rebounded 43-31. The X-Factor must be the shoes. Anthony Davis and Malik Newman scored just 6 points each, Marcus Smart had 3 points. And they still won by 30.

Brown only got to the line twice and his frustration led to his ejection.

Brown ejected, but Jazz hold on for 13th straight win

Recap | Box Score | Highlights

MVP: Stanley Johnson stepped in to fill in for Brown and made all the key plays. He chased down Lance Stephenson on the break for a crucial block and added 10 points, including 4-4 from the line, in the final 4 minutes. He also had a couple of rebounds, a steal and an assist in those final minutes. There's been a lot of talk about whether Johnson should be in the starting line-up in the place of Malik Newman. With games like these, coach Stevens might have to shake things up.

LVP: After scoring 65 and 51 in the last 2 games, Brown let his emotions get the best of him. Yes, he had 19-6-5, but shot 9-26 from the field and 0-8 from deep with 7 turnovers. He was ejected in the fourth quarter after fouling Lance Stephenson and the profanities that followed got him ejected and his actions will probably warrant a suspension and/or fine.

X-Factor: The front court for the Jazz was extremely efficient. Against a small Pelicans team, Anthony Davis, Nerlens Noel and Chris Bosh combined for 51 points. The trio, led by Nerlens Noel's perfect 9-9 shooting, were 22-28 from the field. The trio also had 8 blocks, they had 16 as a team.

Jaylen Brown suspended 3 games for verbal abuse of officials, 'fracas' with coach

Jaylen Brown has been suspended 3 games for after publicly criticizing the referees and reportedly getting into an altercation with coach Brad Stevens and a few more members of staff, an incident where Brown had to be restrained.

After the Jazz win over the Pelicans, where Brown was ejected, he wouldn't leave the floor immediately, shouting profanities at the referees. On the way to the locker rooms, he wouldn't calm down and kept shouting and kicking trash cans and any other object that got in his way.

The suspended was announced by the team after an incident in the locker room, where Brown was still irritated. Coach Stevens tried to calm his superstar down, but Brown wouldn't have it and went at his coach. According to sources, no punches were thrown. What actually happened, has not been revealed.

"This sort of behavior is not accepted on this team and will not be tolerated. Jaylen has been suspended from the team for 3 games," the Jazz announced in a press statement.

Johnson filled Brown's role well, but that left the bench without a contributor like him.

As Brown watches at home, Knicks beat Jazz

Recap | Box Score | Highlights

MVP: Without Brown, the Jazz looked awful defensively. The lanes were wide open and the Knicks had a field day, led by Trey Burke. The guard had 29 points on 13-21 shooting.

LVP: It should be Brown. He lost it after the Pelicans game and now left his teammates to fend on their own. Of the players who played however, Marcus Smart had 9 points and couldn't stay in front of Trey Burke. Also, with Stanley Johnson in the starting line-up, the bench was out-scored 47-20 with Brandon Jennings leading the reserves with 10. If they want to win without Jaylen, someone on the bench should step up or maybe Johnson should return to a reserve role and give the starting nod to Dorell Wright or Sefolosha.

X-Factor: Rodney Purvis, a player drafted ahead of Jaylen Brown, had 17 points off the Knicks bench in just 13 minutes. Nick Johnson had 12 points in 11 minutes. Both had 3 assists as well and shot a combined 14-18 from the floor. The Knicks shot 62% as a team.

MVP: Monta Ellis led the Kings to the win with 37 points and 5 steals. He scored 33 through the first three quarters as he sat for most of the third. The Kings had built a 24-point lead through those first three quarters. He made his first 10 shots, including a 60-footer to end the first half.

LVP: It's hard to pick just one, as statistically all 7 key rotation players played their part for the Jazz, cracking double-figures in scoring. But the effort just wasn't there as they let Ellis, Gordon Hayward and Jeff Teague split them apart. Chris Bosh played 10 minutes and had just 2 points and a turnover, -18 in those minutes.

X-Factor: The Kings led by as many as 25 thanks to the sloppiness of the Jazz. The Jazz turned it over 22 times and committed 20 team fouls, the Kings had 8 and 14 respectively.

MVP: Despite picking up 2 fouls in the games first 4 minutes, John Wall had a very productive night. He finished with 26 points and 7 assists on 10-16 shooting in just 26 minutes. The win helped the Nuggets over .500 for thr first time this year and into 7th in the Playoff race.

LVP: Marcus Smart failed to play the point effectively. Despite 10 points, 7 assists and 3 steals, Smart had 6 turnovers, made just 3 of his 9 shots and whenever Wall was on the floor, Smart was in trouble. Substitute Brandon Jennings played 16 minutes and scored 10 points as well and also did a better job on Wall defensively while also drawing a few foul to keep the Nuggets guard out of rhythm.

X-Factor: The third game without Brown was the most promising, but at times it felt like the Jazz were dragging their feet and were just waiting for their leader to return. Brown's suspension ended and he will be in the line-up for their match-up against the Heat. Whether he starts is yet to be announced.